


BBS GTA Gang AU (H2OVanoss)

by GoBigOrGoHoe



Category: BBS-fandom, Banana Bus Squad, H2OVanoss - Fandom
Genre: GTA AU, Gang AU, H2OVanoss - Freeform, M/M, Minicat - Freeform, but mostly H2OVanoss, ohmtoonz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-09
Updated: 2018-02-09
Packaged: 2019-03-15 22:34:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 14,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13622892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoBigOrGoHoe/pseuds/GoBigOrGoHoe
Summary: Vanoss is the leader of a powerful gang in Los Santos. When his friend and fellow gang member Mini Ladd gets captured by the gang's biggest rival he seeks help in the form of a dangerous hitman that goes by the name of Delirious.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

It was already late at night when Vanoss finally finished the last stack of papers that had taunted him from the top of his office desk for days. Today he had finally convinced himself to tackle the giant pile of paperwork that hat come with the failure of his gang’s last heist. The leader of the gang that rivalled his own, a cold and ruthless man, who the people in the city only referred to as The Don, had been the reason for the colossal, disastrous clusterfuck of a mission, which they only barely survived. Vanoss groaned internally and rubbed his face in exhaustion.   
As if on cue, the door to his office abruptly swung open violently and his second-in-command, Tyler stumbled into the room.  
  
“What happened?” Vanoss quickly wanted to know, already having a bad feeling in his stomach. Something was wrong and judging by the dishevelled looks of the tall man in front of him he was about to face a catastrophe.  
“It’s the warehouse. The Don, he… it was an ambush. They killed most guards and… they took Craig.”  
Wildcat was visibly upset and no wonder- he and Mini Ladd were close friends, maybe even closer than him and Vanoss.  
Without any further questions the leader jumped up and stormed out of his office, Tyler hot on his heels, and headed for the meeting rom. Most of his gang were already there. Their voices were buzzing in the room making Vanoss dizzy. After he got the attention of his subordinates, Vanoss put his hands on the long table and leaned forward.  
  
“What do we know?”  
“They were at least fifteen, heavily armed. They took none of our products they managed to capture Mini.” Marcel stated matter-of-factly but everyone could hear the concern in his voice. He hesitated for a moment before he added: “We lost five men, brutally murdered.”  
“Who? ”  
Without a word, Ohmwrecker, aka Ryan, handed him a sheet of paper with a list of names on it.  
“Some of them were beaten into a pulp but I managed to identify them nonetheless.” He stated in his usual calm, collected voice.  
Vanoss stared at the names on the list.  
Five names. Five People. Five bodies. And Vanoss knew every one of them. He had always taken pride in the fact that he had close relationships with almost everyone, knew everybody’s name and he cared about every single one of them. Only now he realised, that maybe this was his greatest weakness.  
The leader stared at the names for several more moments before putting the list down and pinching the bridge of his nose.  
“Do we know, where they could have taken Craig?”  
“We’re not sure.” Marcel responded quietly.  
Vanoss breathed heavily.  
“What are we going to do, Evan?” Tyler asked. He was one of very few people, who called him by his real name.  
There was no hesitation in Vanoss’ voice, when he answered,  
“The Don wasn’t after our products tonight. He was after a higher ranking member of the gang. He knew that Mini was going to be in the warehouse tonight. He probably wants to interrogate him in order to learn about our weak spots. Obviously we can’t let this happen.” At that he earned approving murmurs from his subordinates, “But” He continued, “What is even more important is the fact that this ambush was personal. The Don’s men didn’t have to brutally kill our guards the way they did but they did it anyways and I think we all know, why. The Don want to hurt us, weaken us. By ordering the attack today, he has crossed a line. These men didn’t have to die. It’s cruel and it’s wasteful and it means war.”

A long silence followed his last statement.  
Then, suddenly, Cartoonz, whose real name was Luke, slammed his fists on the table and announced in his thick southern accent,  
“Yeah, let’s take the motherfucker down.”

Most of the crew cheered at that, excitement filled the air. A few of them though seemed not too thrilled about what was going to come. One of them, Brock, was also the first to speak after the cheering ended.  
  
“And how are we going to win the war? The Don has more men than us.”  
“ Moo is right. Of course we will need help but I’m pretty sure that all of us know that there are lots of other people in this city that want to see the fucker dead; maybe enough to make a difference.” Marcel said thoughtfully.  
“Exactly” Evan confirmed “and I already have a plan how we can get an advantage.”  
“Are you going to let us in on that plan?” Ryan asked, looking mildly interested for the first time since the meeting had begun.  
“A secret weapon.”  
“A secret weapon?” Tyler repeated baffled. The rest of the crew looked taken aback as well.  
“Yes.” Evan nodded.  
“Who are we- the fucking Justice League? I know, people call you Night Owl but this is not a goddamn superhero movie, Vanoss.” Marcel said incredulously.  
“Not a real weapon of course, you idiot.” Evan responded, rolling his eyes, slightly annoyed, “I’m talking about a guy.”  
“Are you finally coming out?” Luke joked, earning a glare from Vanoss that the bearded man chose to ignore.  
“I’m talking about an assassin. An incredibly talented one. Perhaps the best of them.” Evan said, walking up to a filling cabinet and pulling out a file that was impressively big.  
“And where are we going to find this super-killer?” Wildcat wanted to know.  
“I think, I already did.” Vanoss answered and tossed the file on the table.  
“There’s a rumour that a skilled hitman, that hasn’t sided with anyone yet, has recently settled down in Los Santos. Take a look at his file, guys. He goes by the name of Delirious.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

“I still think that this is a bad idea and we’re probably going to die.” Tyler said and cursed under his breath when he got out of the car and heavy rain assaulted his grumpy face.  
“I know, Wildcat. You’ve told me multiple times now, but do you have a better idea?” Vanoss asked, slowly getting annoyed with his friend’s moody antics. He knew, of course, that Tyler was only extra grumpy because he was still upset about the kidnapping of Mini Ladd.  
Wildcat snorted.   
“A better idea than meeting a random, dangerous assassin without any backup? Yeah, I could think of a few.”  
“We want to recruit that guy, not take him hostage. We wouldn’t make a very good first impression if we ran in there with full force, demanding to see him. Besides, he hasn’t sided with anyone yet, so what reason could he possibly have to harm us?” Evan argued.  
“The fuck do I know? The guy calls himself Batcoon. He’s probably a fucking lunatic.” Wildcat pointed out but Vanoss just brushed him of.  
“Do you want to get Mini back or not? We’re doing it the way we planned and that’s final.” He said, using a serious tone, effectively shutting Tyler up. 

A few moments later they entered the dimly lit bar that Evan’s informant had told him about. According to him, the mysterious guy, Delirious, could be found in there, waiting for clients. Followed by Tyler Evan walked up to the bar, signalling the bartender.

“What do you need?” The man in front of him asked, looking him and Wildcat up and down.  
“Just some water for me and my friend. We’re feeling a little delirious.” Vanoss answered, using the word, his informant had told him about, stressing the last word meaningfully.   
Evan could see how the bartender noticeably stiffened as he became a little paler than usual. His impressive moustache twitched a little. He was obviously not too happy about housing an assassin in his establishment. Maybe the mysterious man had forced him.  
Although he was visibly shaken, the bartender stepped out from behind the counter and led them to a dark corner of the bar and motioned for them to walk through a door that was almost hidden in the shadows. Tyler and Evan shared a look and walked through the door. 

The room they now found themselves in was even darker than the bar, which Evan found rather impressive. Only one naked light bulb was hanging from the ceiling. The only other things in the room were two chairs with a table between them. One of the chairs was empty and the other one…

“Would you look at that- the infamous Vanoss.” The man’s voice was slightly muffled through the hockey mask he was wearing but it couldn’t hide the dangerous tone that almost made Evan shiver. Almost.   
“So, you know who I am.” He stated.   
“Well, of course, how could I not? The tales of your on-going rivalry with The Don are quite legendary, to say the least. Everyone in the city is too scared to openly talk about it, but believe me, there are stories. Tell me, Vanoss…”Delirious got up from his chair and started to slowly walk toward him making Tyler take a defensive stance. Vanoss noticed that they were almost the same height. “What business does the owl have with the raccoon?”

By moving closer to them, the assassin had also stepped into a better light and Vanoss could barely make out his eye behind the mask. They were blue and shining with something like … excitement?  
Wildcat had seen it as well and Evan could more feel than see him reaching for the gun that was hidden in his waistband. 

“There is no need for violence, big guy.” Delirious said slyly. “I’m not planning on hurting your boss.” The masked hitman giggled. “I guess I should take it as a compliment that you think I’m important enough to bring your second-in-command.”  
Vanoss had to admit that he was taken aback. The structure of his gang, the ranks and positions of each of the members were not official and not general knowledge at all. This man in front of him shouldn’t even know who Wildcat was, let alone his position as his second-in-command.

“What, are you surprised about all the information I have about you? I already told you there are stories and I am a very good listener.”  
“If you’re that well informed, you probably already know why we’re here, so why don’t we cut the crap and start talking business.” Vanoss said after he regained his composure. The assassin seemed to think for a moment. Maybe he was contemplating on killing him. It was hard to tell what he was thinking because of the damn mask. Evan didn’t like not seeing the facial expressions of the man before him. Not knowing, what was going on in his head almost drove him insane. Finally Delirious shrugged.   
“Why don’t we sit down then?” he gestured in the general directions of the chairs.   
Without waiting for an answer he turned around and went back to the table to sit in his chair again. Vanoss followed him and took his seat. Wildcat stood behind him, trying to look as tall and intimidating as possible but if the hitman was affected by that he didn’t show it. Vanoss was fairly sure that he could press a gun to the man’s head and he wouldn’t even blink. 

Delirious himself was also still analyzing the young gang leader. He didn’t look like an aggressive, brutal kind of guy but the way he held himself, the way he talked and how his subordinate looked at him, gave him the impression that he was indeed talking to a man of unquestioned power, someone, who was used to be treated with respect. Delirious was eager to test out his boundaries.  
“So you’ve come to ask me for help with the whole ‘Don-situation’. You want me to do some of the dirty work.” The hitman said and now that the first tension in the room had faded a little, Evan noticed that Delirious had the tendency to slur his words and he also detected a southern accent that reminded him of his crew member Cartoonz. Vanoss straightened his back.   
“You’re right. That’s exactly why we’re here today. I’m assuming you already know what happened a few nights ago.”  
“You mean the warehouse? Yeah, that certainly wasn’t a pretty sight.”  
“You were there?” Wildcat interrupted.   
“I was. Saw the whole thing.”  
“Why were you there?” Vanoss demanded cautiously.  
“Got a tip from an informant. Thought I’d check it out, gather some information in case they come in handy one day and would you look at that? I was right.”  
“So you saw what happened to Mini Ladd? Is that what you’re saying? Where is he?” Wildcat spoke up again but was quickly silenced by Vanoss who simply put up his hand, signalling him to be quiet.  
“As you can see” He slowly started, “We really are in a precarious situation here and as much as I hate to admit it, we do need you.”  
“So you want to hire me to take care of The Don and his gang.” Delirious said, his voice clearly disinterested.  
“No.”  
“No?”  
“No. We don’t want to hire you. We’re here to recruit you.”  
Delirious was startled. That was unexpected.  
“You want me to join your gang?”  
“I need you to join my gang.” Vanoss nodded. “People say you’re very skilled, a natural talent. Some even say, you’re the best and I’m willing to believe that. The Don has killed many of my man and now he has also captured a very close friend. He needs to be stopped and I need you to help accomplish that. Even if that means trusting a man that doesn’t show his face.”  
For the first time since the young gang leader and his subordinate had entered the room, Delirious was genuinely interested in what was happening. A membership in a gang, a powerful one at that would bring some advantages like a secure income, protection and a better housing for instance. Although he was internally buzzing with excitement he didn’t show what was going on in his mind. He couldn’t just accept an offer without checking for alternatives.   
“I need to think about it.” He said slowly.   
“I understand.” Vanoss replied, not wanting to pressure the assassin. Behind him he could feel Wildcat stiffen.   
“I think you should leave now.” Delirious continued. “I have a lot to consider. I’ll let you know when I made my decision. Don’t bother coming here again. I will find you.” He giggled again.

Evan could still hear it long after they had left the shady bar he could still hear it when he was lying in his bed that night. Delirious needed time to consider his offer. He understood that but how could Evan know that the assassin wouldn’t decide to betray him and run to The Don behind their backs? Groaning, he rubbed his face, totally exhausted. Right now he could only hope that he made the right call today.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

Delirious had always hated elevators or any small confined spaces that could that could potentially fall from the sky, crash and kill him in seconds in general really. He never understood what kind of madman would invent a scary machine like that and he tried to avoid them as often as he could. Unfortunately that was not the case today. The headquarters of The Don’s crew were located in one of the highest skyscrapers in Los Santos. Hidden in plain sight. Delirious thought about how Vanoss would react if he found out that his enemy was hiding right under his nose.   
The thought amused him and he laughed quietly to himself, causing the men beside him to exchange uneasy, worried glances. They were his own man, people he had hired to help him with some of his missions. Delirious knew that they were all a little afraid of him and he did nothing to discourage that. They didn’t need to like him, they needed to function.   
  
When he stepped into the office The Don was standing at the big window front, his back turned towards the entrance, showing no signs that he had noticed the assassin and his henchmen.  
Just one little push, Delirious thought but quickly pushed the thought away. He wasn’t here to kill The Don. He was here to negotiate. Although the clear disrespect the tall, lean man in front of him showed him was unnerving to say the least and the assassin had problems holding back a growl.   
Finally The Don turned around, walked back to his table und sat down. He didn’t even bother offering the masked man a seat. Delirious grit his teeth, annoyed. He took the opportunity to give the gang leader a look over. He had sun-tanned skin. His eyes were small and almost jet black. They had something restless the way they flickered from one place in the room to the next, never finding something to focus. Delirious saw what seemed like a dozen golden and silver rings glistening on his long, slim fingers that were folded on the table.

  
“Speak.” The Don ordered and it took him an immense amount of self-control not to jump over the desk und slit the gang leader’s throat.  
“Two days ago I was contacted by a man that you know as Vanoss.” He said and waited for a reaction but if he was surprised he didn’t show it.  
“I suppose he wanted to ask you for your help because he wanted revenge for the unfortunate incident at the warehouse.”  
“Correct.” The hitman confirmed.  
“So you’re here to kill me then.”  
“No. I’m here to consider my options. You see, Vanoss didn’t just want to hire me. He offered me a place in his gang.”  
“That sounds indeed very tempting. Are you planning on accepting his offer?”  
“I’m not sure yet.” Delirious said and studied his nails. “Depends.”  
“On what?”  
“You.”  
“You think I’m going to offer you better conditions? A place in my crew?” The Don laughed. It sounded like a hyena.  “And why would I do that? Why would I want you in my gang? I don’t have use for a little cut-throat like you. Who do you think you are? Coming here, making demands, thinking I’m afraid of you. Let me tell you a secret- I’m not afraid of anyone and you… you need to learn your place in this society.” He paused, sneering cruelly, “I think you need a lesson about respect.”

Then, suddenly, everything happened in the blink of an eye. The Don pulled a gun and fired, effectively taking down the assassin’s men, before finally pointing the gun at him. Delirious didn’t even flinch, though internally he was fuming. He didn’t particularly like these guys but killing them was just… wasteful and unnecessary. He began to understand how Vanoss must feel.  
Delirious put up his hands defensively and said lightly:  
“It was just a question, man. I get it. No need for violence. Look, I’m already on my way out.”  
He backed up towards the exit slowly, cautiously eying the gun that was still pointed at his head. He didn’t really think, The Don would actually shoot him. He had made his point clear. Killing his men was a warning for him not to step out of line.  
“Good.” The Don answered with a sly grin. “Close the door behind you.”

* * *

 

“Four days.” Tyler said. “It’s been four days and he still hasn’t contacted us.”  
They were standing on top of the roof of their headquarters. It was a rather large building that had enough space for business and also for personal apartments for some of the higher ranking members of the gang, including Vanoss and Wildcat.  
“You need to calm down, Tyler. He said, he’s going to tell us his decision and he will.”  
“What? You trust him now?”  
“That would be stupid. You were right. He is a nut job, total wildcard. Nevertheless, he’s useful. Do you want to get Craig back or not? “  
“We don’t even know if he’s still alive.” Tyler huffed. “Evan, every day that we’re waiting for his decision the chances of getting him back are getting smaller and smaller. I still don’t understand why you insist on recruiting that maniac.”  
“Because he is supposed to be the best and if that’s true I’d rather know him on our side than anyone else’s. It won’t be enough to just kill The Don. We have to destroy his gang entirely otherwise someone else will just take over after him and I believe that Delirious is the key to achieving that.”  
“Now THAT’S very flattering.” A voice behind them spoke.

In the blink of an eye, Wildcat and Vanoss spun around and pointed their guns at the source of the voice. It was a man, dressed all in black and tanned. He was almost the same height as Evan. If Vanoss had to guess he would say he man was a few years older than him but he wasn’t sure. Dark hair, blue eyes and a cocky smirk beneath a slightly freckled nose. The face was unknown but the voice was hard not to recognize.  
“Delirious?”  
“The one and only.” The assassin chirped. Baffled, Vanoss lowered his gun. Wildcat seemed to hesitate for a moment but followed his example in the end.  
“How the fuck did you get here?” Tyler asked.  
“I would be very bad at my job if I wasn’t even able to break into simple gang headquarters, right?”  
Evan felt uneasy about the fact, that he could apparently be found so easily and made a quick mental note to check his security systems as soon as possible.   
“You’re not wearing a mask.” Wildcat stated the obvious. “I heard you never show your face.”  
“I never show my face to people who have no business knowing what I look like but I thought, when I join your gang I should give you the chance to see my dashing good looks.” Delirious answered, flashing them a toothy grin.  
“That means, you’re accepting our offer.” Vanoss said.  
“Only under one condition.” The assassin replied, stepping closer to them, the smile now gone. “When the time comes, I want to be the one who kills him.”  
Vanoss looked at Wildcat, who shrugged. Then he turned back to Delirious.  
“Done.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

After showing Delirious the apartment he was going to stay in they had went down to the lounge where most of the people who resided in the headquarters had been gathered to introduce them to their newest member. As expected many of them had eyed him a little bit suspiciously except for Cartoonz. After he had heard the assassin’s southern drawl he had immediately declared him as his new best friend, volunteering to show him everything he needed to know. The hitman seemed to be mildly amused by Luke’s behaviour and let himself being dragged around by the wrist. Vanoss observed the whole situation, content with how things were headed.  
Later that night, it was already dark outside, he was again sitting in his office, forming a plan in his head on how to make best use of his new secret weapon.  
An almost hesitant sounding knock made him look up.  
  
“Enter.” He called and the door swung open to reveal the newest member of his gang. Delirious was leaning in the doorframe, mustering him for a while.  
“Are you just going to stand there or are you actually gonna say something?” Vanoss asked.  
“I just wanted you to let you know that he is still alive.” Delirious said.  
At that the leader perked up slightly.  
“You mean…”  
“Mini Ladd, yeah.”  
“How do you know?”  
“I have sources.” He answered vaguely, earning a raised brow from his new boss. He sighed.  
“I didn’t want to tell you because I was afraid it would give you a wrong impression but… I heard The Don’s guards talking about it when I was in his headquarters.”  
Vanoss inhaled sharply.  
“What were you doing in his headquarters?”  
“Checking out my options, like I said I would.” The hitman shrugged. “Don’t worry. I didn’t snitch on you guys. I merely mentioned your offer of a place in your gang because I wanted to see if he would offer me conditions. He didn’t. Not only that but he also killed my men and on top of that he was extremely impolite. So, yeah, I can see why you want to see him dead.”  
“Earlier today I said that we are going to have a meeting tomorrow where we would discuss whatever knowledge you have to offer, remember?”  
“Yeah.”  
“So why did you come to tell me now? Why not wait until tomorrow?”  
Delirious seemed to think about it for several moments.  
“I don’t really know. Maybe it’s because you said that this Mini Ladd guy is a close friend and if someone close to me got kidnapped I would want to know. I think knowing they’re still alive would make me feel better. Does it make you feel better?”  
“It does.” The leader nodded surprised. He hadn’t expected the hitman to be this considerate.  
“You should tell Wildcat then.” Delirious said, giving him a look that Evan couldn’t place. “I’m sure it would make him feel better too.”  
“I will. Thank you, Delirious.”  
“No problem, Evan.”  
  
Evan didn’t even bother to ask how the assassin knew his real name; instead he let a small smile pull at the corners of his lips. That was enough for Delirious to flash him another one of his big shit-eating grins before turning around and leaving the leader alone with his thoughts.  
  


* * *

 

  
The next day the gang was gathered in the meeting room again, listening attentively to every bit of information Delirious had to offer which unfortunately didn’t include the whereabouts of Craig.  After that they all started collecting ideas on how to operate and who could be a possible ally in the upcoming war against The Don.  
Delirious himself was a little distracted because he was busy watching his new boss.  
He had always found that you could judge a man’s character best by the way he treated those beneath him. The hitman had to admit he admired Vanoss a little as he watched him listen to his subordinates’ councils, carefully considering every single one of them, discussing his own ideas with everybody. Delirious could see that his men respected him for that and he instantly knew that he had made the right decision to join his gang.  
He finally had a place where he could feel genuinely valued and secure. Almost everyone had treated him with nothing but respect, except for Wildcat, maybe, who still seemed to be quite hostile towards him.  
The assassin wondered what he had done to make Tyler hate him that much.  
What has surprised him the most though was the immediate connection he had felt between himself and Luke thanks to the fact that they both had been living in North Carolina for a majority of their lives.  
All in all he could say that he was pretty much content with the way things had turned out.  
As the meeting started to come to an end Vanoss finally directly addressed Delirious to assign him his first mission and the hitman found out that he quite liked the way the young leader spoke his name and he liked how  it always sent jolts of excitement down his spine.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

His mission was simple: He had to break into a weapons supplier’s hideout, who supposedly worked with The Don and convince him to switch sides. Should he not be able to do that his task was taking out the supplier and possible witnesses. No big deal, but still he couldn’t take chances and risk fucking up his very first mission. That meant that he had to prepare properly and in order to do that he had to go to the lower floors where the gun range, training areas and armoury were located. Marcel had told him that he was most likely to find Cartoonz there because the bearded southerner was in charge of the armoury and gun range. He also heard that Luke was supposed to be proficient in hand-to-hand  combat and that he trained every days for hours when he didn’t have a mission assigned to him. When Delirious reached the floor he was looking for he could already hear distant voices from one of the rooms. Delirious knew hat he shouldn’t eavesdrop but he couldn’t help but to overhear a conversation.   
  
“You need to stop being so reckless with your training.” A calm voice said It was somehow familiar but Delirious couldn’t quite place it.  
“This wasn’t a training accident.” The second voice was Luke’s, no doubt about that.  
“I know but still… I can’t always come down here to stitch you up in secret just because you can’t seem to keep out of trouble.”  
“It’s not like I go out there looking for trouble. The trouble always seems to find me.”  
“I don’t care.” The other man replied.  
“See? That’s the problem with you. You never care. Not about Mini Ladd, the murdered guards, our war with The Don, nothing. You care about nothing and it pisses me of.” Luke accused. He  sounded deeply upset. “Craig is still held captive god-knows-where. He’s probably getting interrogated or even tortured right as we speak and you just sit there and do nothing. Five of our men get brutally murdered and you don’t even bat an eye. Sometimes I wonder if you have any emotions at all because to me you’re nothing but a fucking ice berg.”  
There was a short silence, followed by a disinterested sounding “Are you done?”  
The next thing Delirious heard was a loud clang as if someone was forcefully pushed against a hard object. Delirious quickly wondered if they had killed each other but before he could go investigate he could hear Cartoonz say: “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…” Then the door to the room swung abruptly open and finally revealed the identity of the other voice’s source. It was Ryan, looking deeply confused, his face betraying his usual calm behaviour. Ohmwrecker stopped for a moment and made a surprised (maybe even embarrassed) face when he saw Delirious standing outside the room. He hesitated and for  split second the hitman thought he was going to say something but he apparently changed his mind and stormed past him in the direction of the elevators.   
  
Moments later Delirious entered the room where Cartoonz stood, looking absolutely terrified and his expression got even worse when he saw the assassin and realised that he must have heard everything.  
“I… it’s not…” He began to say but Delirious stopped him by holding up his hands defensively.  
“You don’t have to explain shit to me, man. It’s not my place to ask questions. I’m just here because I need help finding some stuff for my mission.”  
The taller man sighed and was visibly relieved.  
“You got a list?”

 

* * *

 

Before he left the headquarters Delirious was stopped by Vanoss.  
“Got everything you need?” The leader asked.   
Delirious shrugged. “Yeah, I checked in with Cartoonz earlier.”  
Evan nodded thoughtfully. “Good. Listen, man, I know you’re used to working alone but I feel uncomfortable letting you go there on your own so I’d appreciate it if I could send Marcel and Wildcat with you as backup. Don’t worry; they won’t interfere unless it’s necessary. They’re only there to-“  
“Make sure I don’t betray you?”  
“Make sure you come back alive.”  
“Aw, are you worried about me?” Delirious grinned and raised his eyebrows in mock surprise. Evan rolled his eyes but couldn’t fight the small smile that was tugging at the corners of his mouth.  
“Something like that, yeah.” He replied.   
“As much as I appreciate that, it’s totally not necessary. I’m a big boy, y’know? I can take care of myself. Always have. I am your secret weapon after all, remember?” Delirious said cheekily, thinking how amused he had been when Luke had told him the phrase Vanoss had used to describe him that night.  
“Remember me to kill Cartoonz the next time I see him.” Vanoss answered, the smile on his face visible now.   
Delirious found that he liked seeing him smile and even more did he like the fact that it was him who made him smile.  
“Will do.” The hitman said cheerfully before turning to leave, shortly waving goodbye.

Wildcat and Marcel were already waiting outside the building in a car. Although Marcel tried his best to crack some jokes to ease the tension, the obvious dislike Tyler had for the assassin made the drive to the supplier’s compound, that was unfortunately located a little bit outside the city, an uncomfortable experience.  
  
“Okay, we’re here.” Marcel said relieved as they parked the car in a safe distance from the hideout. “Do you need any help?”  
Delirious just gave him a funny look, pulled down his hockey mask and got out of the car.   
“Be careful, honey!” Marcel called after him and the hitman flipped him the bird as he walked away.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

Getting into the compound was child’s play. Being sneaky and stealthy was one of his natural talents. After only having to slit the throat of one man that was standing guard at the door of the weapons dealer’s office he simply decided to kick in the door and storm into the room. Using the advantage of the surprise effect he quickly dodged two bullets the dealer fired from his gun before running up to him and disarming him in seconds. He then held the gun to the pale man’s head and calmly stated: “We need to talk.”  
  
Unfortunately it turned out that the weapon dealer’s skull was as thick as the Great Wall of China. Not only did he keep declining Delirious’ offers, he was also quite rude so it was no wonder that he ended up with a bullet in his head, fired from his own gun. Delirious found the irony hilarious and briefly wondered why he bothered to bring his own guns when he heard agitated voices coming closer in his direction. Someone must have heard the gunshots and finally decided to check out what was going on. That meant it was now time for the second half of plan B: take out the witnesses.  
  
After completing his task he decided to call Wildcat and Marcel to help him destroy the evidence and steal all guns available.   
When the two gang members arrived the first thing they saw was a pile of bodies, half a dozen at least. They then proceeded to go upstairs to the office and found the masked assassin kneeling behind a desk next to the body of a man that the guys guessed was the weapons supplier.   
  
Delirious was over and over covered in blood splatters and even some brain tissue but what was more disturbing was the fact that he was humming slightly while searching through some paperwork.   
  
Wildcat gave him a look and whispered: “This is what I’m talking about.”  
Before Marcel could ask what he meant he was interrupted by a noise of delight coming from the assassin.   
“Found it.” He practically sang joyfully.   
“Found what?” Tyler asked and crossed his arms.  
Delirious jumped up from his kneeling position and held up a sheet of paper, waving it in the air triumphantly.   
“Delivery addresses.”  
Now Marcel was sure that the assassin was singing. He and Wildcat both needed a moment to process what the masked man meant but when they did their eyes grew big with excitement.  
“You mean this is a list with addresses linked to The Don?” Tyler quickly wanted to know and looked like he could kiss the hitman despite his dislike for him.  
“Exactly. This will probably lead us straight to his hideouts.” Delirious confirmed.   
“And one of those hideouts might be where they are keeping Mini!” Marcel exclaimed, finishing the thought. “Quick thinking, Delirious, well done. C’mon, let’s pack the stuff together and get out of here. We’ll call someone to clean up on our way back to the headquarters.

* * *

  
  
“We need to talk about Delirious.” Wildcat said when he and Marcel stepped into Evan’s office later.   
“What about him?” Their leader wanted to know curiously.  
“Look, I know that he has been really helpful today and I’m sure you have your reasons to trust him but I seriously think recruiting him was a mistake.”  
Vanoss sighed already sensing what was going to come. Ever since he had announced his plan to recruit the assassin there hadn’t been a single day that Wildcat didn’t tell him how terrible his idea was. Nevertheless, Wildcat was his closest friend and he deserved to be heard.  
“What are your arguments this time?” He asked leaning back in his chair in anticipation.   
“I seriously think something’s wrong with him. I’m afraid he is even more of a wildcard than we expected.” Tyler then proceeded to explain to Vanoss what he and Marcel had witnessed, how they entered the house, found the bodies of half a dozen men only to see Delirious, splattered with blood, happily humming to himself.  
“Is that true Marcel?” Evan inquired and his subordinate nodded hesitantly.  
“It was… disturbing to say the least. I think you should probably talk to him” He suggested.  
“I will.” Vanoss dismissed them. “Thank you for coming to me with your concerns.”

* * *

  
  
Evan found Delirious on the roof, drinking from a bottle that was most likely containing some kind of booze, seemingly lost in thoughts. When he stepped closer he could hear the hitman quietly humming to himself just like Wildcat had described.  The humming stopped when Delirious realised the presence of his boss. His usually sharp senses were obviously affected by his drinking but still a lot keener that anyone else’s.  
  
“Delirious…” Vanoss started, not knowing how to end his sentence.  
“Is this about the mission today?” the hitman wanted to know, startling the young leader.  
“Yes. I heard some things that were a little… worrying.”  
The assassin sighed and finally turned around to look at him.  
“What did Wildcat say? Was it something about my abnormal behaviour after killing half a dozen of men? That I showed no remorse whatsoever and even seemed happy?”  
Vanoss nodded.   
“I knew it.” Delirious bit his lip, trying to form the next sentences in his head. Evan noticed his slurring was significantly stronger under the influence of alcohol. “That’s why I usually insist on working alone.” He sighed again. “I guess I owe you some sort of explanation…”  
Vanoss crossed his arms.  
“There is an explanation?”  
“Have you read my file? I assume you did.”  
“You’re correct.”  
“Did you read the part about me killing a child?”  
Vanoss nodded, uncomfortable with the sensitive topic.  
What that report didn’t say is that it was an accident. A raid on a gas station went wrong, I hotwired a car and hit a little girl while trying to escape.” He paused for a moment. “I was seventeen.”  
Evan had a hard time to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat.  
“Delirious, you don’t have to tell me this. I don’t want to trigger any bad memories.”  
“But that’s exactly the point, Evan.” Delirious interrupted. “I don’t see that day as a bad memory. When I think about the accident I don’t feel sad, I don’t feel guilty I just…” The hitman was lost for words. Several minutes passed without either of them saying anything. Finally after what felt like an eternity the hitman spoke again: “That day, I realised that I’m different. That something is wrong with me. This is why I can kill people and still happily sing to myself afterwards. Because my mind doesn’t work like yours.” The assassin looked down at his feed as if embarrassed and put his hands in the pockets of his blue hoodie. “I could understand if you don’t want me in your gang anymore. If I were you I wouldn’t want a monster living under my roof.”  
Evan took a few steps forward to close the distance between them and put his hands on the older man’s shoulder, making him look up. Their eyes met.   
“You are not a monster.” Evan said firmly, squeezing his shoulder in order to stress his words.  
“You can’t change the way you are and you shouldn’t have to. I accept you the way you are and I’m sure the others will come around as well.”  
“Even Wildcat?”  
“Eh, he is just grumpy because of the whole Mini Ladd situation. As soon as we get him back he’ll see that you’re not the villain he thinks you are and until then I will just tell him to suck it up.”  
“Thank you, Evan.” Delirious’ voice was almost a whisper.  
“No problem. Thank you for trusting me with this.” Evan squeezed Delirious’ shoulder one more time before letting go and Delirious could still feel a tingling sensation where he had touched him.   
Vanoss turned to go but stopped before he could reach the door. He turned back around.   
“You should get inside soon. You’ll catch a cold.”  
“Aw, you really ARE worried about me.” The hitman cooed, followed by his signature giggle, that Evan could again still hear when he was lying in his bed later on but this time it didn’t make him feel uncomfortable.   
  
Evan came to the conclusion that he actually enjoyed hearing Delirious laugh. It somehow managed to make him feel warm inside.  
Vanoss fell asleep that night, dreaming of blue eyes and suntanned skin.  



	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

“Hey Ohm, can you help me out here for a second?” Delirious asked when he walked into the infirmary the next morning, holding up his bleeding arm.  
“What the fuck did you do?” Ryan aske and stood up to gather bandages and disinfectant.  
The assassin merely shrugged.  
“Turns out you shouldn’t handle sharp objects when you’re hung-over.”  
Ryan rolled his eyes.  
“Who would’ve guessed?” He said sarcastically while applying the bandages. He noticed that Delirious’ arms were already covered in scars, some more visible that others.  
“And do you often handle sharp objects while having a hangover?” He asked glancing down at the scars pointedly.  
“I am a professional hitman, what do you think? You can’t expect me to do my job and not have any battle wounds.” Delirious replied.  
“Oh great, now I have another reckless idiot that I have to stitch up on a daily basis.” Ohm stated, visibly annoyed and noticed how the assassin looked at him strangely. “What?” He asked quickly.  
“Oh, nothing… It’s just, you know, for a guy who supposedly doesn’t give a shit about anything you sure seem to care a lot about Cartoonz’ injuries.”  
“Because Cartoonz’ injuries force me to go down to the armoury at least once a day to stitch him up and that’s a pain in the ass.”  
“Sure. That must be it.” Delirious said and winked before turning and leaving the infirmary. “Thanks by the way.”  
Then he was gone.  


* * *

  
  
It was in the middle of the night when a loud, sharp knock woke him up.  
A trained soldier that he was, he was up and ready for action in seconds and managed to answer the door before Evan could knock a second time.  
When the door swung open the young leader was startled for a moment. Delirious was only wearing a pair of sweatpants that were hanging low on his hips, not only revealing freckled shoulders and a few scars on his chest but also some tattoos here and there. Vanoss had to blink a few times before regaining his composure. He cleared his throat.  
“We have a situation. Meeting room in five minutes.” He said quickly and didn’t even wait to hear the assassin’s response. He practically ran away, down the hallway in the direction of the meeting room, his face feeling a lot warmer than usual.  
Delirious stared after him for almost a minute.  
Did he just imagine that or had Vanoss really been checking him out? No, that was ridiculous; the assassin shook his head at his own stupidity. There was no way in hell the younger man was attracted to him. Although, the thought was definitely interesting to say the least.  
  
When Delirious arrived, the rest of the gang was already gathered around the long table, some still half asleep, looking a little confused as to why they weren’t in their beds anymore.  
“Vanoss, why the hell are we having a meeting at 2 am?” Brock yawned and earned approving murmurs from Lui and Marcel.  
To everyone’s surprise it was Wildcat who answered, effectively waking up the sleepy gang members.  
“We found a finger. Well, more like, a finger was sent to us anonymously.” The tall man’s voice was unsteady and he had to wipe his face before he could go on.  
“Ohm confirmed that judging by the finger prints it belongs to Mini Ladd.”  
Nobody knew what to say after that statement and it was awfully silent before Lui spoke up.  
“Does that mean he’s… Is he…?”  
“I am 100 % sure that his finger was cut of ante mortem, meaning that he is probably still alive.” Ryan said and for a moment Delirious could swear he heard relief in the usually emotionless medic’s voice.  
“The most important thing right now is that we remain calm and don’t rush anything. That would only help The Don.” Vanoss explained  
“Then what are we going to do next?” Delirious wanted to know and Tyler’s head snapped to him so abruptly he heard his neck crack audibly.  
“Why don’t you tell us, you fucking genius? This is your fault after all.”  
“How is any of this his fault?” Cartoonz asked incredulously.  
“Because this finger is not only meant as a warning it is also an act of revenge, If super-killer over here hadn’t butchered all those people yesterday The Don wouldn’t have a reason to punish us.”  
“Excuse me, but taking out the witnesses was part of the job.” Delirious said confused.  
“Yeah, but you obviously failed to destroy the evidence.”  
“Marcel said it would be taken care of by someone else. Besides, it doesn’t matter if we left any evidence or not. Who else had a reason to break into the weapons dealer’s hideout aside from us?”  
“Delirious is right, Wildcat. There’s no reason to be pointing fingers like that. Please calm down.” Evan said.  
“I will not fucking calm down. Ever since this maniac has joined our gang you have been constantly on his side. I have enough. I thought he was supposed to be a secret weapon that could help us bring back Craig but do you know who you let into our house instead? A psychopath, a lunatic, a fucking monster that leaves chaos wherever he goes.”  
“Enough.” Evan thundered and slammed his fists on the table, making everybody flinch and look at him. “You are out of line, Wildcat. You have been for the last few days and until now I let you get away with it because I knew it was only because you care about Craig’s safety but enough is enough. You are right, I have been on Delirious’ side from the beginning. I fucking had no other choice, you know? Because you didn’t pass up a single opportunity to treat him like the scum of the earth. This will stop right now. I will no longer tolerate your disobedience and I want you to apologize to him. This is an order.”  
Wildcat grit his teeth and for a split second it looked like he was going to object but finally seemed to give in but when they all turned around to look at Delirious the hitman was already gone.  


* * *

  
  
Delirious was running. He was running through the shadows of the night. High above the city he jumped from building to building, rain soaking his clothes and body.  
Wildcat was right. It was his fault. If he had done something that night the warehouse was attacked, if he had just accepted Vanoss’ offer instantly, if he had pushed The Don out of the window that day, things maybe would look different right now.  
The hitman didn’t feel guilty, that wasn’t in his nature but he was able to realise when he fucked up and he had fucked up big time.  
Luckily for him this wasn’t like the day he had accidentally killed that little girl. This time he could fix his mistakes.  
He would get Mini Ladd back and he would do it at every cost.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

Mini Ladd didn’t know how many days had passed since they had locked him up in the dark cellar that smelled like death and chained him to a pipe, leaving him to sit on the cold, wet floor. At first they had come to interrogate him and bring him food and water but when they realised that Craig wasn’t going to tell them anything the visits got more and more irregular until yesterday, or at least he thought it had been yesterday, when they had come to cut of his finger. The pain was bad but the sound of his bone being cut in two was even worse. At least they had enough sense to cauterize the wound and treat his stump to prevent inflammation.   
The medical treatment however did unfortunately not include pain killers so all Mini could do was sit still and try to ignore the dull pain where his index finger used to be. Moments after Craig seriously started considering to break his thumbs in order to get out of his handcuffs, the usually quiet environment got shattered by a loud bang, followed by several gunshots and if Craig listened closely he could hear someone… laughing?  
Suddenly the door to the cellar was kicked open and he had to squint against the unused bright light. He heard footsteps coming down in his direction and when he could finally see again he thought he was dreaming. Kneeling in front of him was a guy wearing a hockey mask. What. The. Fuck.   
“Who… who are you?” Craig managed to say with a coarse throat.  
“Delirious.” The masked man answered while he skilfully picked the locks on his handcuffs. “I am here to save you and take you back to the headquarters.”  
“Wait, Vanoss sent you?” The blue-haired man asked.  
“I guess you could say that.” The stranger asked before pulling Mini up and throwing his arm over his shoulders in order to support him.  
“But…” Craig started but was interrupted.  
“Not now. We have to get out of here first and I’m already running low on bullets.” Delirious said and together they hurried to the stairs.  
  
With the guidance of the masked stranger they actually managed to get out of the compound and even found a car that was parked outside next to the house. Delirious quickly led them towards the vehicle but suddenly a shot was fired from somewhere behind them and Mini heard his new companion yell: “Motherfucker.”  
Delirious fought through the pain, pulled out his gun and fired a few shots that apparently hit their targets from the sound of it. He finally managed to walk Craig to the car, hotwire the engine and escape down the curvy road that led away from the hideout.   
“You got shot.” Mini said after they were in a safe distance.  
”Gee, thanks for noticing” Delirious said through his teeth.  
“Well maybe we should stop so I can look at it”  
“Don’t worry about it. This isn’t my first rodeo. Besides, better me than you. Wildcat would have killed me if I brought you back with a bullet hole in YOUR thigh.”  
“You know Wildcat?”  
“Of course I know Wildcat. He is the only reason I’m pulling this kamikaze stunt right now. I guess now is the time to properly introduce myself. I am Delirious and I’m your gang’s new hitman. Vanoss hired me to help find you and win the war against The Don.”  
“I see. So how did you find me?”  
The hitman shrugged. “Asking some questions, dangling a few people over the edge of a high building, you know, the usual.”  
He inhaled sharply  when he hit the brakes to make a turn and his injured leg screamed in pain. He breathed heavily trying to focus on his task instead. He had to bring Craig home.  
The blue-haired man eyed his saviour carefully before saying:  
“I think I like you.”

* * *

 

  
“I hope you are proud of yourself.” Luke said to Tyler with a venom in his voice that Evan had never heard before.   
It had already been several hours since the assassin’s disappearance. So far every attempt to contact him had failed and with every passing minute Luke got more and more upset.  
Vanoss himself didn’t know how to feel. He was overwhelmed by a feeling of helplessness that was completely new to him and he couldn’t think of anything to calm Cartoonz down.  
“Relax, man. I’m sure he will be fine.”  
“I swear to god, Tyler, if you say that one more time I will rip off your arms and shove them up your-“  
To everybody’s surprise it was Ryan who stepped up and put a hand on Luke’s shoulder. The bearded southerner turned around and his eyes roamed desperately over the collected facial expressions of the medic but instead of making him even angrier, this time his calm behaviour seemed to affect him in a totally different way. His shoulders slumped and in a unusual small voice he said:  
“I know it doesn’t make sense and you probably don’t understand but in the short time he has been here Delirious has become really important to me. It’s weird but from the moment I met him it felt like I’ve known him for years. He is like the little brother I never had and I just can’t stand the thought of him getting hurt or…”  
Ryan then did something that was even more unexpected. He pulled the taller man closer and wrapped his arms around him. Cartoonz stiffened for a moment before relaxing and letting his head fall down on the medic’s shoulder. No one said anything but Vanoss could see Marcel grinning and Lui nudging Brock to give him a thumbs-up and mouthing “Finally”.  
Vanoss himself didn’t know how to react but he caught himself thinking how much he wished he could hold Delirious like that when he returned. If he ever returned. Evan was just about to push that ridiculous thought aside when he heard an excited voice.  
“I see them. They’re outside the building. Look at the CCTV.” Marcel exclaimed, practically jumping in his chair. Evan felt a rush of relief flooding through his body.  
“What do you mean, you see THEM?” Wildcat asked baffled.  
“Delirious and Mini Ladd, they’re-“ But before Marcel could finish Wildcat had already stormed in the direction of the elevator. The rest of the gang, including Vanoss followed him quickly and the leader saw that the elevator was in use. Buzzing with anticipation they impatiently waited for the doors to open. Out of the corners of his eyes Evan could see that Luke was holding Ryan’s hand and for some reason that made him feel a little strange.  
  
Delirious and Mini Ladd stumbled out of the elevator; the assassin was barely able to hold himself and the weakened Mini upright. His leg was protesting against any further movement and he was incredibly thankful when the extra weight was lifted from his body. Everything in his head was spinning and he could faintly hear the guys talking.  
“Mini, are you okay?” That was Marcel.  
“I’m fine but Delirious got shot. He is bleeding a lot.”  
“I’ll take a look at that.” He heard Ohm say.  
“Careful, I think he is about to pass out.” There it was. The only voice he had wanted to hear. It was also the last thing he heard before everything went black.  
Evan caught Delirious when he fell to the ground.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

The first thing Delirious noticed when he woke up was that there was a spot of dirt on the ceiling of the infirmary. The second thing he noticed was that he was only wearing shorts. The third thing was that he was not alone. He looked around to find Craig in the bed opposite his own, still fast asleep. Tyler was next to him on a chair, resting his head on Craig’s thigh. The hitman smiled internally when he saw that they were holding hands, proving his assumptions correct.  
   
“Look, who is awake.” A well-known voice said and Delirious turned his head to see that Ohmwrecker was standing beside his bed, a clipboard in his hands, giving him a small smile that he totally didn’t expect.  
“How long have I been out?”  
“Almost a week. How do you feel?”  
“Better. My leg doesn’t hurt but I suppose I owe that to some kick-ass pain killers, right?”  
Ryan nodded lightly.   
“I’m going to have to check your injury. You’re lucky. The bullet went right through but it hit some bigger blood vessels so you lost a lot of blood. It’s a miracle you survived that.”  
Delirious just shrugged, smirking.  
“I guess it is just like you said. I am a reckless idiot.”  
Ryan shook his head disapprovingly but nevertheless continued with his check-up. He carefully removed the bandages around his thigh and checked for any signs of inflammation. He then proceeded to tenderly apply some pressure to the skin around the wound.  
“Does that hurt?”  
“No, but if you move that hand upwards a little more I might have to insist you take me out to dinner first.” Delirious grinned widely and wiggled his eyebrows.  
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible. You would have to kill me first.”  
Cartoonz entered the room and walked over to them. Delirious’ grin got even bigger when his friend threw a possessive arm over the medic’s shoulders.  
“Wow, I really missed a lot while I was gone, didn’t I?” Looking between the two men in front of him and then over to Mini and Tyler who were still sleeping.  
“You are one to talk. At least we didn’t get carried to the infirmary in the strong arms of a certain leader.” Luke winked, actually succeeding in making the hitman flush a little.  
“Please tell me, that didn’t happen.” He whispered horrified but much to his dismay Ryan confirmed it.  
“Bridal style. It was pretty cute actually.” The medic said and Delirious almost had a cardiac arrest.  
“Well, there goes my reputation.” He joked and laughed before coughing and then wincing in pain. All of the sudden he felt sore all over. In an instant Ohm’s playful attitude was gone and he was back to his usual, professional self, giving him another shot of pain killers before he and Cartoonz left him to rest.  
  


* * *

  
  
When Delirious woke up the second time he almost screamed because he got jump scared by Lui whose face was right in front of him, almost making the assassin shit himself.  
It turned out that Lui hadn’t come alone. A larger part of the gang including Marcel, Scotty and Brock was gathered around his bed. Wildcat was there as well, supporting a still weak looking Mini Ladd. The crew eventually left, leaving the assassin alone with the both of them.  
The tall second- in-command cleared his throat.   
“Listen, man I don’t know how to say it but I want to thank you for bringing Craig back.” He scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “I would also really like to apologize. I was just so upset that day and I just snapped.” He paused. “No, actually I was upset the whole time and I took it all out on you. You did nothing to deserve that and I really hope you can forgive me.”  
“There’s nothing to forgive. It’s already forgotten. I’m not one to hold grudges and I understand now even better why finding him has been so important to you.” Delirious said and gave them a meaningful look, making Mini flush a little and sending Tyler into a fit of laughter. After he had calmed down he got serious again.  
“I see. But still. I have been a giant ass the whole time so please let me at least apologize.”  
Delirious nodded.  
“I think I can do that.”  
“Aw, look at you, Tyler. Being all adult and shit.” Craig said making the three of them laugh a little at the absurdity of everything. They were interrupted though by the sound of the door to the infirmary opening.  
The assassin’s heart dropped when he turned around and saw Vanoss.  
“Could you please give us a moment?” The young leader asked and Tyler nodded before quickly saying: “I’m supposed to take a walk with Craig anyways to help him strengthen his muscles again.”  
“My muscles are fine, thank you very much.” Craig complained and pouted a bit but followed Tyler anyway and closed the door behind them. Now Evan and Delirious were alone.  
  
“Are you mad at me?” Delirious asked and sounded more like a child than a trained assassin that could face the wrath of his boss any second now.  
“What? No. Why would I be mad at you?” Vanoss replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “You just went against my direct orders not to rush anything, left without a word, not answering your phone and made everyone freak out. Then you broke into a hideout all by yourself without preparation or back up only to get shot in the process.” The leader’s voice had gotten louder and he was almost yelling now.  
“Well, I’m sure glad, you’re not mad at me.” Delirious said and smiled at him sheepishly. It worked. He could see how the tension in Evan’s shoulders disappeared.  The leader sighed and sat down on the chair next to his bed, exhaustedly rubbing his face. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days.  
“I’m not mad at you because you went against my orders or anything. I’m mad because you just left. We thought…” He stopped.  
“You thought I had changed my mind and ran to The Don.” Delirious assumed.  
“No.” Vanoss shook his head vehemently. “We thought you were gone forever. And then you came back with Mini Ladd, covered in blood with a bullet wound… and when you just passed out we… I thought you would die.”  
“I understand.” The hitman nodded but Evan shook his head again.  
“No. No, you don’t.  
What Vanoss then decided to do was probably the most stupid thing he’d ever done and it was highly inappropriate but it was an instinct and he couldn’t help it.   
Evan reached for Delirious’ arm and wrapped his fingers around the older man’s wrist. Anxiously he waited for him to react.  
Delirious stared at Evan’s fingers on his forearm, totally lost for words and looked up to see his leader’s nervous face. He didn’t know what to say until Evan moved to remove his hand again. He quickly caught it and held it in place. Evan’s eyes grew big in surprise.  
“Delirious, I…”  
“Jonathan.”  
“Excuse me?”  
“My name is Jonathan.”  
Evan was surprised.  
“Jonathan.” He repeated and the hitman trembled a bit internally, loving the way the young leader spoke his name. Evan smiled. “I like that.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

The following weeks Vanoss realised two things. The first thing was that his assumption that Tyler and Craig were close had been a gigantic understatement and while he was happy for his friend he was also a little bit jealous because they got to be together openly and he didn’t.   
That was partially Vanoss’ own fault because he felt uncomfortable with his subordinates knowing about him and Jonathan. The other problem was that he didn’t even know if there was a ‘him and Jonathan’. The two men had not managed to talk about what happened in the infirmary. All he knew was that he definitely wanted to explore what was going on between them and that led Vanoss to his second realisation: It was almost impossible to find a quiet moment to spend alone with the assassin. Although the attraction between the two gang members was clear and mutual, they just didn’t have a chance to take any further steps because every time they seemed to get closer, something or rather someone managed to interrupt them.  
  
An example for that was a night Vanoss only referred to as ‘The midnight incident’.  
Vanoss was in the kitchen in the middle of the night; his paperwork still had him up at an ungodly hour, when the hitman had entered the room. He was only wearing shorts and a shirt, still a little bit limping from his injury. Delirious had poured himself a glass of water before turning around to face Evan, leaning against the counter.  
“Hello, stranger.” He said with a small smile that Evan returned. “Do you come here often?”  
“Yeah but I gotta say, the company is way better than normally.”  
The assassin’s smile transformed into a cheshire grin. That was enough for the young leader  
Within seconds he crossed the room and closed the rest of the distance between them. He put both hands on each side of Jonathan, effectively pinning him to the counter. His eyes roamed over the assassin’s face, searching for any sign that he wanted him to stop and when he didn’t find one Evan mustered all of his courage to lean in. Just one second before their lips could connect they heard loud steps coming in their direction, making them jump apart. Evan quickly turned around and opened the fridge, partly because he needed an alibi and partly because he needed to cool down his flushed face.  
It turned out that it was only Cartoonz who wanted a midnight snack and he was gone as soon as he had appeared but it was already too late and the moment was over. Jonathan and Evan said awkwardly goodnight and went to their rooms, both wishing that things had gone differently.  
  


* * *

  
  
 It took another whole week for Delirious’ leg to heal completely but the hitman had lost some muscle tissue due to the lack of movement. That was why he spent most of his spare time in the gym, training his strength and agility. Sometimes he has company in the form of Luke but since he and Ryan were an official thing the bearded man was more often with the medic than not so most of the time Delirious was alone in the gym.  
One day though, Vanoss decided to pay him a visit. He entered the gym and stopped  dead in his tracks when he witnessed the most beautiful thing in the entire world which was Jonathan, once again shirtless and in his low hanging sweat pants, pummelling a punching back. Evan watched in awe how the assassin practically danced around the target, each punch precisely hitting the spot he intended. The leader saw how the muscles in Jonathan’s back moved beneath his skin and how some sweat glistened between his shoulder blades. The sight made Evan’s stomach flutter.  
  
 When Delirious took a short break to take a swig of water he noticed that he wasn’t alone anymore so he removed his earphones and turned to see who it was.  
Evan was leaning against the doorframe, looking stupidly attractive as always in his plain white shirt that fitted him just perfectly. The leader was watching him with a facial expression that reminded Jonathan of a predator stalking his prey.  
“Need a sparring partner?” The younger man asked in a low voice, sending chills down the assassin’s spine.  
“Do you think you can get up with me?” Jonathan grinned cheekily. “You’ve been spending lots of time in your office lately. I don’t want to accidentally hurt you.”  
“Are you saying I’m getting out of shape?” Evan wanted to know and crossed his arms, flexing his biceps by doing so, making Jonathan swallow and shake his head. No, Evan was definitely not out of shape. He put his bottle of water down and took a defensive stance.   
“Let’s go then.”  
  
 The fight lasted for a good fifteen minutes. They tested each other’s strengths and reflexes, throwing punches and kicks in order to knock each other to the ground without actually trying to hurt each other. After realising that they were evenly matched they started to wrestle, Evan using his slight advantage in height to tackle Jonathan to the ground, holding him down by sitting on top of him, holding him tightly between his thighs.  
Jonathan tried to wiggle his way out, unintentionally grinding against the younger man. An involuntary groan escaped Evan’s lips, making Jonathan stop his attempts to free himself for a second, giving the leader the opportunity to reach for his hands and pin them above his head to the ground.   
For several moments they just stared at each other, breathing heavily with flushed faces due to their fight and of course the sudden intimacy of the situation.  
  
Evan was the one to make the first move. He let go of Jonathan with one hand while still using the other to keep the hitman’s hands in place.   
With his now free fingers he began to caress Jonathan’s cheek before moving lower, letting his fingers brush tenderly over his collarbone, making the assassin tremble a little. Encouraged by the positive reaction Evan decided to push further and leaned down, tenderly pressing kisses to Jonathan’s freckled shoulders, tracing the outlines of a tattoo that was located there and nibbling gingerly on his collarbone before nuzzling his nose in the crook of his neck, inhaling deeply.  
Evan wasn’t the type of guy that could describe how someone else smelled. All he knew was that Jonathan’s scent was intoxicating and he was instantly addicted.  
“Evan…” He heard Jonathan’s husky voice pleadingly against his ear and lifted his head too look at his face. His eyes darted down to the older man’s slightly parted lips. He ran his free hand softly up and down his side, enjoying the feeling of the skin beneath his fingers. Evan decided that he couldn’t wait any longer and he lowered his head in order to close the last bit of distance between them and he noticed that Jonathan was doing his best to lift his own head despite still being restrained by the younger man’s hand. Evan gently brushed his lips against Jonathan’s chin, slowly wandering upwards but before their lips could finally connect the two men were interrupted by a familiar southern accent.  
“Hey, Delirious! Ryan and I want to go down to the bar. You wanna join u- holy fuck. I’m so sorry.” The laugh in Cartoonz voice was obvious, betraying his apologetic words.  
Reluctantly Evan looked up to see Luke standing in the entrance. He didn’t even bother to try to come up with an excuse as to why he was sitting on top of the hitman. The situation was way too compromising and the young leader had no idea how he could possibly talk his way out of this.  
Frustrated Vanoss decided to get up from his comfortable seat, glancing down at Jonathan, who looked just as frustrated as him, making the leader hope that there was a chance that they could continue this another time.  
Delirious propped himself up on his elbows and looked over to Luke, who had the decency to at least try to seem a bit embarrassed.   
“Sure. I’d like to come with you. Just give me a minute…” The assassin said winking nonchalantly and this time Luke’s embarrassment was real when he understood what Delirious’ words implied. Flushing slightly the tall southerner turned to his boss.  
“Care to join us, Vanoss?”  
The leader hesitated and looked over at Jonathan who gave him an approving nod.  
“Sure, why not?”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

The four gang members decided to spend the following hours in a nearby bar. Vanoss had an arrangement with the owner so the place was relatively safe and the chances of stumbling upon one of The Don’s men were low.   
They had walked to the bar in a comfortable silence.   
Ohm and Ryan walking next to each other; the taller man had his arm wrapped around the medics waist.  
Vanoss and Delirious walked behind the couple beside each other and the hitman’s heart skipped every time the leader’s fingers brushed against his own or he gave him a look that was so intense it made him feel breathless. The feeling was new to him. It was exciting and nice and frightening at the same time.   
The assassin was wearing his mask as he always did when he was in public but he could still smell the smoke and stench of sweat inside the bar. It was kind of comforting and reminded the assassin of the small, shabby pubs he used to go to back in North Carolina.  
  
The four men were standing at the counter, Evan and Jonathan waiting for their drinks while Ryan and Luke were already drinking, standing a few feet away from them, the taller men shamelessly flirting with his lover, trying to lure the reserved medic out of his comfort zone and to Delirious’ surprise it seemed to work.  
He and the gang leader on the other hand were enjoying their own conversation while casually taking a sip from their drinks. Evan had ordered a whiskey pure and Jonathan had gone for a brand of booze Evan didn’t know but it smelled good and he bet it would be ten times better if he could taste it on Jonathan’s lips.   
  
It was a nice evening even though Delirious could sense that Evan was a little bit on edge. The hitman didn’t know if it was just because he was naturally careful or because he was still feeling awkward about the incident in the gym earlier. Maybe it was the group of wannabe thugs that were sitting on a nearby table, staring in the direction of the four gang members. Some of the men’s faces were irritated, some plainly disgusted and with the help of his trained senses Jonathan could hear the remarks of one of the thugs.  
If Vanoss, Ohm and Cartoonz were able to hear them too they didn’t show it. Delirious tried to ignore the guys on the table and his tactic seemed to work until the voice of the obnoxious thug became louder.    
  
“What the fuck are those faggots doing here? Disgusting. People like that make me sick.” He spat and gestured in the direction of Ryan and Luke and Delirious could see out of the corner of his eyes how Ohm put a calming hand on Cartoonz’ arm in order to hold him back.  
  
The assassin’s main focus though was on the young leader next to him. His shoulders were tense and Jonathan’s heart dropped when Evan pulled away the hand that he had laid on the counter next to his own, touching their fingers lightly, and put it in the pocket of his jeans instead.  
  
“Just ignore them.” The assassin whispered to his companion, reaching to touch his shoulder. It felt like a knife to his guts when Evan swatted his hand away and pulled back slightly. The leader must have seen the hurt look on Delirious’ face and tried to justify his actions.  
“I’m sorry it’s just…”  
“You don’t want to ruin your reputation?” The hitman finished the sentence, a coldness in his voice that Vanoss hadn’t heard in a long time.   
Evan wanted to contradict. He wanted to tell Jonathan that he wasn’t such a coward, that it wasn’t true, that he didn’t care what people thought about him, that it didn’t matter but he couldn’t bring himself to say it. He could not lie to him like that. It did matter. It always mattered how people saw him. He couldn’t show his enemies any weaknesses.   
When the leader remained silent Delirious scoffed.  
“I’m going to take a piss. Maybe when I come back you’ll have found enough courage to pull your head out of your ass and finally figure out what you want.”  
The hitman left without looking back, missing the guilty look on Evan’s face.

* * *

  
  
“Hey, Vanoss, Luke’s wasted. I think we should head back home soon.” Ryan said a while later while struggling to support his tall lover who indeed seemed to be rather tipsy.   
  
Vanoss downed the last bit of his whiskey hastily, happy to finally be able to leave because as soon as Jonathan had left a random woman had taken the empty seat next to him and started to hit on him.  
A few weeks earlier, Evan wouldn’t have passed up the opportunity of a meaningless hook-up but ever since Delirious had entered his life he had lost any interest in those kinds of activities.  
The woman next to him was tall and beautiful with her long legs and wavy blonde hair but she didn’t have Jonathan’s freckled nose, his blue eyes or an infectious laugh that made his stomach flutter. She was nice but she was not Jonathan.  
  
“Hey, where’s D’lirious by the way?” Cartoonz slurred while Evan shrugged on his jacket. Evan gave the couple a surprised look. He had been so busy with turning down the woman’s advances that he hadn’t noticed that the hitman wasn’t with them.  
“I thought he was with you.” Ohm said, his brows furrowed.  
“No. We had a bit of a fight and he went to the restroom. When he didn’t come back to me, I assumed he was with you guys instead.”  
  
The realisation hit him the same moment it hit Ryan. They exchanged a quick look before they took off in the direction of the restrooms, the medic dragging Luke along, and their hands ready on their guns.  
When the three men entered the dirty men’s restroom they were greeted by pure chaos. The sinks on the wall were shattered on the ground, water flooded the tiled floor. The mirrors were broken as well and there were shards of broken porcelain and glass everywhere, some of them splattered with blood.   
Evan’s hand clenched tightly around his gun when Ryan leaned down to grab something and held up a familiar hockey mask.  
  
“Motherfucker.” Luke said, suddenly sounding a lot more sober than before.  
“Backdoor?” Ryan asked.  
“Backdoor.” Vanoss confirmed and took off again, the other two men hot on his heels.  
  
They followed the trail of blood down the corridor and out the backdoor that led to a parking lot. It was already too late. There was no sign of the assassin, only a pair of tire tracks leading away from the bar before they disappeared altogether. Vanoss nearly broke his toe when he kicked a nearby trashcan, making his subordinates flinch.  
Jonathan was gone.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind that English is not my native language and please excuse any mistakes that I may have made :)

They were standing on the roof on top of a building not far from The Don’s headquarters but still in a safe enough distance to let them prepare in peace. Thanks to Delirious they knew all of the hideouts of the rivalling gang so fortunately it didn’t take Vanoss’ own gang very long to find out where they had taken the assassin. Evan stood near the ledge of the roof with Tyler beside him. The second-in-command held his signature pig mask in his hands.  
  
“This is it. I can’t wait to take the fucker down.” Wildcat said, a steely determination in his voice.  
“Same here. Bitch still owes me a finger. I’m going to cut of his index finger and have it sewn to my own hand.” Craig announced, stepping up to the ledge next to his boyfriend and intertwined their fingers.  
“You know that’s not possible right? If you try that you could die.” Vanoss heard Ohm say and turned around to see the medic standing there with his arms crossed.   
Cartoonz stood behind his lover, hugging him from behind, resting his head on the smaller man’s right shoulder. Evan saw Ryan grip Cartoonz’ wrist and squeeze it reassuringly, closing his eyes when Luke pressed a tender kiss behind his right ear.  
Vanoss turned and witnessed how Wildcat and Mini exchanged loving glances.  
“We could already die tonight.” The blue-haired man said solemnly.  
“We will be alright, Craig, don’t worry.” The taller man replied.  
“I’m not concerned about myself. I’ll be just fine. It’s you I worry about. Don’t you dare die today.” Craig said quietly, the slight tremble in his voice betraying his joking words.  
  
Evan’s chest hurt when he saw the two men kiss. He could have had that with Jonathan but he had fucked it up by being a coward. He swore to himself that if he got the chance to make things right he would. No more hiding.  
  
“Alright, you lovebirds, let’s not waste any more time. The others are already waiting. Come on.” That was Marcel, wearing the mask of a monkey. Next to him was Lui, sporting a similar one. Both had their shotguns shouldered and were ready for action.  
Vanoss nodded and looked down at his own owl mask before putting it away. He didn’t need it. He wanted The Don to see his face when he killed him.  
His gang was heavily armed, they had back-up ready and the cops would turn a blind eye tonight.  
Determined, the gang leader cocked his gun.  
  
“Alright. Let’s do this.”

* * *

  
When Delirious woke up after what he assumed must have been hours he quickly assessed the situation. They had tied him to a wooden chair with a rope, leaving his legs untied. That was their first mistake. Their second mistake was to leave him guarded by only two men. Their third and gravest mistake though was turning their backs in him.

In a matter of seconds he had broken his chair, freed himself from his ties before picking up one leg of the chair, using the sharp, pointy end to impale his guards.

Delirious was busy searching the guards for potentially useful stuff, like guns and keycards in order to sneak out of the compound when he heard gunshots not too far away from his location. The next thing he heard was Wildcat.

“Yeah, take that, pussy lips.”

“Pussy lips. Nice one, Tyler. Very classy.” Mini Ladd snorted.

The hitman rolled his eyes. So much for being sneaky. After gathering what he needed he stood up, quickly opened the door just wide enough to peak outside. Craig and Tyler cowered behind the wall of a corridor, having a shootout against four of The Don’s men and he saw them take out two of them before falling back a little to reload. Delirious took the opportunity to kick the door fully open and jump in the middle of the hallway, firing two shots out of one of his stolen pistols both hitting their targets, killing the enemies. Grinning the hitman lowered the gun and turned to look at Mini and Wildcat.

“Hey guys. Fancy seeing you here.” He said cockily before getting serious again. “Have you managed to take out The Don yet?”

“No, Vanoss wanted to go after him. Wait, how the hell did you escape?” Mini asked curiously but Delirious didn’t reply. He was already sprinting in the direction of the elevators. Craig and Tyler tried to follow him but were stopped by another group of enemies so Delirious was on his own. The elevator doors closed behind him and he used the calm before the storm to check the clips of his guns, before stretching a little and tapping his foot impatiently. He could only hope to reach Vanoss in time. The Don was a dangerous enemy and who knew what dirty tricks he had up his sleeve. Delirious gripped his pistol tighter when the elevator doors opened and took a deep breath.

* * *

 

It had been easy to break into the headquarters. Too easy. Vanoss should have known that it was a trap but he had been too worried about Jonathan. Now all he could do was curse himself internally when he entered the office of his rival and felt the familiar touch of the a pistol’s muzzle against his head.

“Don’t move, lower your weapon.” A voice behind him said and Vanoss had no other choice than to obey. “Good boy. Now get on your knees.” The young leader did as he was told.

He could now see the man’s face. It was the Don; his cold, black eyes were glistening with satisfaction.  “Did you really think you could win against me?” He asked, smirking triumphantly.

“We took out dozens of your men.”

“So be it. There are always some casualties when you want to win a war.”

Evan could feel his hatred for the man increasing. His rival seemed to notice the way his words aggravated the younger man.

“Oh, don’t you like the way I treat my inferiors? Yeah, I heard that you and I are very different when it comes to that. You are friends with the members of your crew. You care about them and if I believe the rumours even more than that.” Evan tried hard to keep a straight face but failed. The Don saw right through him. “So, it’s true then. The famous Vanoss is not only a queer, he was also stupid enough to fall in love with a worthless cut-throat and of course it had to be Delirious. Out of all the people it had to be that lunatic. I gotta say, this has to be the most hilarious thing I ever heard.”

“Why don’t you just shut up and shoot me already?” Vanoss said through gritted teeth and lowered his head to avoid having to look at his rival.

“Not yet. First I have to tell you something about you little serial killer boyfriend.” The Don kneeled down in front of him, using the barrel of his gun to lift his chin, forcing him to look in his cold eyes. “Delirious is a textbook sociopath. He doesn’t give a shit about you. He doesn’t have feelings for you because he is not capable of loving anyone. Whatever he has said or done was only to manipulate you. That’s what people like him do. You can’t even blame him for that. It’s in his nature.”

Evan had trouble breathing and suddenly he felt dizzy.

“You’re lying.” Evan said shakily but The Don just grinned in response and stood up again.

He cocked his gun and pointed it at the head of the kneeling young leader.

“Any last words?”

“Yeah, go to hell.” The Don spun around in the blink of an eye; ready to shoot the person that had spoken but Delirious was too quick. A single shot was enough and seconds later The Don fell to the ground with a bullet between his eyes.

Evan looked up from his kneeling position and saw Jonathan standing in front of him. The hitman got on his knees to be on his level and reached for the younger man’s shoulder just as he had done in the bar not long ago.

When Evan pulled away this time it wasn’t out of shame. It was because of what The Don had said.

“Evan” Jonathan’s voice was a whisper. “Evan please don’t tell me you believe the bullshit that fucker told you. You know, I’m not like that. I’m not a monster, you said so yourself. I’m not manipulating you. I… I really care about you, you have to believe me.”

“I don’t know what to believe anymore.” Evan said quietly avoiding Jonathan’s gaze.

“Evan, please don’t do this to me. You can’t just let things end like that. You are the first person I ever really cared about. Never before have I felt what I feel when I’m with you. Evan, look at me.” The assassin pleaded and finally the younger man looked up and their eyes met he knew. Jonathan was telling the truth.

Evan reached for the hitman with a shaking hand, gently touched his bruised cheek and saw the glimmer of hope in his blue eyes.

The young leader could hear the voices of Marcel and Lui coming from the corridor but for the first time ever he didn’t care. Evan cupped Jonathans face with his one hand and places the other on the older man’s shoulder. Then he leaned forward and finally closed the gap between them. A firework erupted behind his closed eyes when their lips met for the first time and they melted together as if they were made for each other. Jonathan returned the kiss, one hand on Evan’s chest while tangling his other fingers in his hair, pulling him closer. Evan could hear a whistle coming from the entrance of the office, probably from Marcel, but he ignored it.

Right now it was only him and Jonathan.

* * *

  
And that’s it. Let me know what you guys think^^  
I hope you enjoyed. 


End file.
